“I didn’t think of that,” Emily said. “Maybe Gran can adopt a different cat if Prince has a home.”Not helping Em.
I wasn’t against Gran having a cat but I wanted to make sure she was safe and could handle caring for it. “Maybe.” Maybe I could stay longer than I originally intended to make sure she was steady on her feet, so she’d be less likely to get tripped by a playful cat.
“Let’s move to the kitchen so we don’t disturb them,” Emily said, tearing her eyes away from Prince, who was happily playing with a ball of yarn Gran had rolled on the floor.
“Coffee?” I asked, then immediately apologized.
“It’s okay. It’ll take time to adjust.” Emily put her hand on her belly.She looks so damn happy. My hand twitched, wanting to touch my belly, but I refused to draw attention to it. I didn’t want to talk about it until I’d taken the test.
“I can make some decaf if you want, or some herbal tea.”
“Tea sounds good.”
Our conversation started with bad news. Emily’s company wasn’t hiring, but she suggested I send in my resume anyway. When she asked if I wanted to return to Dallas; I couldn’t answer. I loved Dallas, but after Finn, I felt like I wanted a change of pace.No, I’ve wanted it longer than that. I loved the city life, but had been visiting Weatherford more often.
My phone buzzed with a text alert.Speak of the devil. Not wanting to read it, I turned my phone screen side down.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah, just Red Flag Finn. I’ll read it later.”
Knowing the full story of why I broke up with him, she let it go. “Have you heard from any companies you’ve applied to?”
“No, I’ve followed up, but no dice.” I sipped my tea. “Which is crazy. My reputation is great. I do good work, and my clients leave rave reviews.”
Just like it made no sense for my boss to fire me. Though I reminded myself not to take it personally because my boss said the budget cuts made it necessary. Which was weird; I thought the company was profitable. The nagging feeling that Finn was responsible lingered, but I refused to believe his uncle would be so petty.
My phone buzzed again. I ignored it.
“Mary said she could give you some work, but it’s not full time.”
“For Grannie’s?”
“No, for the Wyatt Foundation. Now that Blake’s joined the board as their legal counsel, they’re ready to grow the foundation.” Blake passed her bar exam earlier in the summer and had the good fortune of landing her dream job before the ink was dry on her certificate.
“I don’t mind contract work,” I said, knowing it was better than nothing. “Hey, maybe we should start our own company.” I said it as a joke, but it wasn’t a bad idea. We both had marketing degrees. Emily’s skills were branding and website design. My area of expertise was tying in and maintaining social media platforms. We’d make the perfect team.
Having our own company would require a lot of work, but it’d give us flexibility and full control.
“Maybe, but now isn’t the right time. Jamie wants me to take time off after the baby’s born.”
“More than the typical maternity leave?” I looked for signs that she didn’t agree, but it was clear she didn’t mind Jamie calling the shots.
“Yeah, but I don’t think my boss will approve the six months Jamie wants me to take.”
“I’m surprised he wants you to take that long, since you work from home.” She could set her own hours and work around the baby’s needs.
“That’s what I said. If my boss won’t approve the extended leave, I’ll ask to work part-time. I’m sure Jamie will be okay with that.”
I didn’t doubt it.
“Why didn’t Mary ask you to help with the Wyatt Foundation?”
“She did, but I’m not as good at the social media stuff, so I suggested you for the job.”
“Em, you didn’t have to do that.” I didn’t want her giving up the opportunity to work with her mother-in-law on a passion project.
“I know. But I’m pregnant and you’re out of work, so it makes sense.” She sipped her tea. “Say you’ll do it, please.” She drew out the ‘e’ while clasping her hands in front of her chest.
